And then I spotted what might be my last hope.
A clump of fallen trees lodged together right before the waterfall’s precipice. A shimmer of wood and dark mottled colors, a little bit of white and green beckoned me.
I swam in its direction, spitting out water every time I surfaced.
If I got there, I’d lodge myself between those branches, and hold on very tight. Perhaps that would give Samuel more time to save me. If I got there and Samuel didn’t save me, perhaps I could Sa-Ta-Na-Ma chant myself into an altered state and time-travel back into present day. If I got there and I still slipped over the cliffs and fell—maybe that would be a relief.
Time sped up and slowed down all at once. How was that even possible? I saw Mama’s face as she turned to me when I was in the back of the car right before we were pushed off the car park ten years ago. “Mama, slow down!” I said.
She put one hand to her mouth and blew me a kiss. “Life goes fast, Madeline,” she said. “Right now we need to be just like life. We need to go very, very fast.”
I popped above the river’s surface for a few seconds and spotted Miri racing along the riverbank accompanied by Tomasis and one very wet, but very healthy dog, Scout.
“Nadja!” Miri screamed. “Grab onto something, anything! Samuel comes for you.”
I heard Malachi in my head. “I think I’d recognize you anywhere, Madeline.”
The currents sucked me under yet again and I spotted Sister Ana, simply yards away, beckoning to me from under the water.
Under the water?
How did she end up in the river? And I realized that when you’re a Messenger, just about anything was possible. Perhaps we could help each other.
She pointed to the logjam and mouthed, “Go.”
I nodded, breast-stroked, and then wondered if she was all right.
Sister Ana wasn’t my favorite person in the world but I certainly wished her no harm.
I turned back to her under the water and mouthed, “You okay?”
But only bubbles existed where she’d been seconds earlier. Sister Ana was gone.
I shook my head. I didn’t understand, but maybe I wasn’t supposed to understand everything. The more I learned about being a Messenger, the more I realized it was in the doing—not in a classroom or a textbook. Learning was the school of life; the good grades, the bad grades, and all those C minuses squeezed in between.
So I swam as hard as I could toward that log jam, my heart thumping so loud, it sounded like drums in my ears. I reached for that thick fallen tree, clamped onto it, and hugged it.
“Yes!” Miri punched one hand in the air as she raced along the riverbank.
“Yes! Tomasis said as ran next to Miri, reached for her hand, but she batted him away.
Safe. Thank you gods for sparing my life. I was safe.
I lurched halfway out of the waters, rested my elbows on the log and watched Samuel as he swam closer to me.
I distinctly heard Mama’s voice in my head. “Take your deepest breath, Madeline,” she said, “Take it right now. Don’t ask why. Just do it.”
Right. Everything was going to be okay, Mom. Stop worrying.
When the wood gave way underneath my forearms, the tree I clutched fractured into pieces, and my face hit the water hard. “No!” I grabbed another log but its rotting wood disintegrated between my fingers. “No!” I screamed as the river claimed me again.
I tumbled above and below its surface, my arms and legs flailing, gasping for air, when the large waterfall loomed in the near distance. I swiveled my head and tried to paddle away. I saw the large underground boulder only seconds before my head rammed into it.
~ twenty-four ~
“Breathe. Do this for me, Nadja! Breathe!” Samuel said.
I rasped for air and coughed as my eyes fluttered open. I saw him through a haze, his face just inches from mine. His eyes were darker, his wet black hair dripped water onto my face.
“You are back!” He said. “I will not let you die! Breathe!”
I nodded weakly, then turned my head, and then spat out half a river’s worth of water. I focused and saw way too many concerned faces peering at me.
“Good!” Miri said. “I think you should vomit again.” She pinched my arm.
“Healthy!” Tomasis said.
“Give her some spirits,” Jorge said.
“She does not need spirits, Captain,” Samuel said. “Nadja, inhale and exhale again. For me.”
So I did. I stared up into his eyes, his gaze so intense when I realized his hand was fisted hard onto my chest, rising and falling with every breath I took. As if we were being born, taking our first breath together while at the same time we were dying, and sharing our last.
I reached my hand up and clung to his wrist. “You found your purpose, Samuel. You’re a Healer.”
“I found my purpose,” he said, “because I found you.”
~ ~ ~
Samuel, Jorge, and the rest of our caravan’s noblemen took advantage of the generosity of Samuel’s parents, Lady and Lord De Rocha. They retired to their estate for rich food, expensive drink, and proper entertainment suited for titled persons.
I didn’t envy them. The local gypsies and peasant help were determined to feed and entertain our small support crew with their own party held in the meadow behind the villa’s large barn.
A large bonfire lit the night sky and warmed us. The food never tasted so good: freshly-roasted herbed pork and vegetables, chicken soup, hearty breads, and a few sweets. The mead flowed.
For once, Miri and I weren’t doing the serving. The locals waited on us like we were visiting nobility. A few men played their ancient drums and stringed instruments, practically serenading us. After a long day of chasing assassins, almost drowning, and being brought back to life by the boy I loved, I finally relaxed.
I scooted back against a tree, relaxed and sank into the slight chill of the night air, and gazed up at the stars that popped bright in the cloudless skies overhead. The camaraderie, the hearty food, and the music combined to make this the friendliest night since we’d hit the road.
“I am Jofranka. You work at the palace, yes?” a female chef who was about one hundred and fifty pounds heavier and twenty years older than Miri asked as she refilled our mugs.
Miri nodded. “Yes. Call me Miri. This meal is wonderful. Thank you.”
“What do you serve the nobles? Do you think they’d like my secret recipe for chicken soup?”
“Most definitely, yes.” Miri sopped the bread into the bowl and munched on it. “This is the best soup I have tasted in years. What is your secret?”
“Well if I told you, it would not be a secret, would it?” Jofranka said.
Tomasis laughed. “You do not know my Miri. She will figure it out. She is a magician when it comes to food.”
Miri frowned. “I am not ‘your’ Miri.”
“Of course you are my Miri,” Tomasis said. “Whose else would you be?”
She grumbled.
“This is the best chicken soup I’ve ever tasted.” I tugged the blanket draped over my shoulders a bit tighter across my chest. “Thank you, Jofranka, for feeding us delicious food and treating us with your kind hospitality.”
“It is our pleasure,” she said. We watched the few couples that now danced next to the bonfire. They smiled, laughed, flirted, and were obviously enjoying themselves.
“I think you should dance,” Jofranka said. “Kennick over there has had his eye on you the entire evening.”
I glanced over at Kennick. He was handsome and he smiled at me. Too bad I wasn’t interested. “Thanks,” I said. “Not me. I have two left feet.”
Jofranka, Miri, and Tomasis stared intently at my feet.
“No,” I said. “That’s merely a figure of speech. I mean—I can’t dance.”
“Well of course you can dance,” Miri said. “Unless your legs were cut off, or you have some horrible disease, or you are on your deathbed. Everyone can dance.”
Tomasis burst out laughing.
“Thank you, Miri,” I said. “What I meant to say was; I have no talent for dancing and that I suck at it. Did I make that a bit clearer?”
Tomasis sprang to his feet and held out his hand to Miri. “Dance with me, Miri.”
“Go dance with the man,” I said.
“Maybe I have two left feet.” She dragged her fingers through her hair.
“Let us find out.” He bowed, took her hand, and led her closer to the bonfire and the musicians.
I leaned back against the tree and smiled. Tomasis was wearing down Miri’s defenses and she was letting her guard down around him. I chose to take it as a sign that all could be right with this world.
I would never forgive myself for failing to save Inêz de Castro. But maybe my message was never meant for her. Maybe my message in this lifetime had always been meant for Samuel. He had been so lost, never knowing his calling. I hoped that after today he’d remember he was meant to be a Healer.
“You look like you are far, far away from here.” Samuel walked toward me, a small smile tugging his lips upward. “How are you feeling?”
I startled. “Much better. Almost like this afternoon never happened.”
“Oh, it definitely happened.”
I felt myself blush and hoped it was too dark for him to see. “What are you doing here?”
“I saw the bonfire from inside the villa. I could not endure the boredom of noble chatter and the incessant preening one minute longer,” Samuel said.
“What about Giulia?” I asked.
“What of her?” He shrugged. “She is my step-sister.”
“She feels a bit more than ‘sisterly’ toward you.”
“I know,” he said.
I blinked. I didn’t know what to say. She was constantly throwing herself at him, but truthfully, I never saw him return her affections.
“At last, Miri’s stern face has been graced with a smile,” he said. “We wondered if Tomasis would ever be able to crack her icy exterior.”
I glanced up and couldn’t help but smile as well. They looked so perfect together. Tomasis leaned in and whispered into Miri’s ear as she threw her head back and giggled out loud. He seized the opportunity and pulled her closer to him.
Meant to be, I thought. In any lifetime they were meant to be.
“Dance with me.” Samuel bowed and then held out his hand to me.
I shook my head. “Oh… no. That’s not a good idea.”
“You said you felt well. Please do me the honor and dance with me, Nadja?” he asked.
Jofranka overhead him and grinned. “Maybe you can overcome the hardship of your two left feet, Nadja, for a handsome nobleman’s request. I know I would.”
I looked up at Samuel. “Seriously, I’m terrible. You don’t want to dance with me. I’ll step on your feet; maybe even break one of your toes. Why don’t you dance with Jofranka?”
“Because Jofranka has work to do,” she said, “and will not be dancing with anyone tonight.” She smiled at Samuel. “I knew you were going to ask me next, and I thank you ahead of time, but I must decline your courteous offer, my Lord.”
Samuel smiled at her and bowed. “I fear it is my loss,” he said and turned back to me. “Nadja?”
~ twenty-five ~
We danced in a meadow next to a bonfire as its flames flickered and hovered in the air for moments, as if they were nature’s sparklers. People around us laughed and flirted, smiled and fell in lust, or love, perhaps a bit of both. Hearts were won, kisses were stolen, future and current lovers embraced.
Not us however, at least not on the outside. The music reached into my soul and lit the dark pockets. I couldn’t help but stare back at Samuel as my face blushed and my breath quickened. I felt happy for the first time since I journeyed to Portugal.
That’s when he grabbed my hand. “Come with me!”
“But it’s perfect here,” I said.
“Come with me.” He led me away from the dance and grabbed a lantern from the ground. We passed a few people chatting and drinking mead on the bonfire’s outskirts.
“Where are we going?”
“Just a bit away from here.” He squeezed my hand tighter and pulled me closer. “Someplace quieter.”
I bumped up against him and nearly tripped on his heels. “Sorry!” I said.
He stopped in his tracks and turned toward me. He cradled my chin in his palm and brushed his thumb over my cheek. “I am the one who is sorry. You are kind but I push you away. You are open but I shut you out. When others turned away, and pretended they did not notice, you stayed and fought. I kept so many secrets from you when you have only been honest and forthright with me.”
“No.” I blushed and looked away. “That’s not true.”
If only he knew…
“Nadja,” he said. “Look at me.”
I did so reluctantly.
“You are so beautiful,” he said. “When I first met you I thought, ‘No, this girl cannot be a servant, she cannot be a gypsy. She must be noble because she must be mine. There was a piece of me who already recognized you. I have a confession. I have these dreams and you looked exactly like the girl who visited me in difficult times. She smoothed my forehead, held my hand, and said, ‘Really, truly everything will be okay. We can figure this whole thing out.’ You look exactly like that girl.”
My hand flew to my chest. After all this time, he was still my Samuel. Right here, right now, in front of me stood my Samuel. My defenses melted away and were replaced by hope.
“So please, My Lady.” he bowed. “Come with me to a place that means so very much to me, come with me to a place that gives me courage. Because I need courage to tell you who I am, Nadja. It is time that you knew.”
“It’s time I tell you something as well,” I said.
~ ~ ~
Cylindrical stone columns, tall archways that formed a broken circle, and other crumbling, ancient buildings surrounded us. I sat on a low stone wall, the bottoms of my feet brushing the tendrils of grass that poked through chipped mosaic tile. “Where are we?” I asked and held out my hand and waved it through the air around me. “The energy here feels magical, but kind of crazy.”
“Roman ruins,” he said. “A temple and a city dating back to before the birth of Christ. I come here when I need to be alone, when I need to think, or pray to anyone in the heavens who will hear me.” He paced back and forth in front of me, agitated.
“Tell me what’s on your mind,” I said.
“Lord De Rocha is not my father. He is my step-father.”
“I know,” I said.
“How do you know?”
“Miri told me ages ago. Besides, I have a step-mother, too.”
“My real father left when I was only eight years old. The very night he departed, I spied on them from behind a door. He kissed my mother with passion and said, ‘Maria, I will always love you. But I cannot settle down. I cannot be this nobleman who collects rents, throws parties, and grows fat, old, and complacent on his land. I will always be there for you and Samuel. But I will not live in a cage, no matter how beautiful you and it, is.’”
“So your mom let him go?” I asked.
He nodded. “Time passed. Some years we would see him and others we would not. Eventually, my mother met Lord De Rocha and he fell in love with her. I knew he would never be in her heart the way my father was, but I also could tell he would treat her kindly.”
“Did he?” I asked.
“Yes.” Samuel smiled for a heartbeat.
“Good. So everything got better after that,” I said.
“For a while. Lord De Rocha had a daughter, Giulia, who acted like I didn’t even exist. That is, until she turned sixteen years old and became a different person, practically overnight.”
“What happened?” I asked.
“She associated with nobles who were wild and acted dangerous. She’d disappear for days on end and return; her clothes dirty, ragged,
sometimes even bloody. And one day she looked at me differently. Not as a sister should look at a brother.”
“She was falling in love with you,” I said.
He shrugged. “A few of my friends said the same, but I refused to believe it. I made excuses every time she pulled me away from a group of people because she just had to speak with me privately. Every time, she massaged my shoulders and told me to relax. ‘Enjoy yourself for a change, Samuel,’ she said. ‘Stop thinking so much. You are a Lord. All you need to do is enjoy life.’”
“What did you tell her?” I asked.
“I told her that her ways were not mine. That I needed to find my purpose, my dedication.”
“But she didn’t leave you alone,” I said.
He shook his head. “One day she sent word she was sick and would I visit her in her rooms? So I went to her. But when the doors were shut she asked me to lock them. She said that she was scared of one of her guards. So I did. By the time I turned back around, she’d slid her top open, and it draped around her waist. She bared herself to me, smiled, and said that she knew I wanted this as much as she did.”
My heart dropped and my stomach turned. “Did you?”
“I thought of her as my sister,” he said. “I told her that but she grew angry. Accused me of leading her on. Giving her mixed signals.”
Oh crap.
“What did you think?” I asked.
“I thought she was out of her mind. I backed out of that room and avoided her for months. I made excuses to travel. I visited other King’s courts. Volunteered for missions and duties that would take me to places far away from her.”
“Did you tell your mother?”
He shook his head.
“Mothers are intuitive,” I said. “I bet she knew.”
His brow furrowed as he gazed into the night sky. “She came to me once and asked me if I was in trouble, if I needed to tell her anything. I said, no.”
“She knew,” I said.
“Not that long ago, I returned to the estate for a quick visit and Giulia cornered me. She had heard news of my real father. Her friends shared vicious gossip and claimed that he was not only a mercenary, but also a highly paid assassin who worked for prominent royals. I told her to stop her ridiculous lying. She said she had proof, that I should meet her at an inn a few villages over.”
The Assassin: (Mortal Beloved Time Travel Romance, #2) Page 16
